Southern California Ballet's 'The Nutcracker' is Dec. 15 and 16

Southern California Ballet’s “The Nutcracker” has been performed for almost 30 years.

Southern California Ballet’s “The Nutcracker” has been performed for almost 30 years. (Courtesy photo)

Emily Sorensen

The Southern California Ballet will be performing its 27th annual production of Tchaikovsky’s “The Nutcracker” on Saturday, Dec. 15 and Sunday, Dec. 16 at the Poway Center for the Performing Arts, 15498 Espola Road.

Shows will be performed at 1 and 7 p.m. Dec. 15 and 1 p.m. Dec. 16.

The show will feature about 125 student dancers from the academy as well as parents and three guest artists, including a Southern California Ballet alumnus.

Victor Wisehart, SCB alumnus and musical theater star, will be performing the role of the Snow Cavalier. Wisehart has appeared in “West Side Story,” “South Pacific,” “An American In Paris,” “Holiday Inn” and more.

“We’re really excited about Victor coming back,” said Toby Batley, co-artistic director of the SCB, along with his wife, Martha Leebolt, who is herself a SCB alumnus. “It’s full circle. It’s a really nice feeling.”

Batley said Wisehart’s return was also great not just for the performance aspect, but for the students to learn from Wisehart behind the scenes. “We make sure the people we invite back are good role models,” Batley said. “It’s important to teach the students (with their visiting performance).”

Wisehart also returned to his former ballet academy this past summer, when he and another dancer taught a summer masterclass to the students, said Batley.

Joining Wisehart as guest performers are David Ward and Mary Beth Hansohn, who will dance as the Sugarplum Cavalier and Sugarplum Fairy.

Ward also appeared in the 2017 “The Nutcracker” production as the Sugarplum Cavalier, said Batley, and was a fellow dancer in the Northern Ballet with Batley and Leebolt for several years before Ward left to pursue a dance career in the United States.

Hansohn comes to the SCB via a recommendation by Ward, said Batley. “We’re excited (about Hansohn,” he said. “She’s very experienced and more mature than our usual guests, which is exciting (for the students to see). She has a lot of presence on stage.”

Several students from the academy will also perform lead roles in the show. Sanae Kanenobu and Kayla Kressin, from Poway High School, and Kanaha Takeda, from Rancho Bernardo High School, will perform in the role of the Snow Queen. All three are high school seniors.

Kanenobu, Kressin and Takeda will also perform soloist roles, such as Spanish Chocolate, Turkish Delight and Chinese Tea, as well as in the snow scene and the flower waltz. Other feature dancers who will have soloist roles in the show are Samuel Fiorino, Rancho Bernardo High School; Madeline Franz, Bernardo Heights Middle School; Lily Hofstetter, Mesa Verde Middle School; Erika McCann, Westview High School; Kelsy Paraoan, Del Norte High School; and Leah Zabezhinsky, Rancho Bernardo High School.

Tickets range from $38 to $46 for adults and $23 for children age 18 and under, students with ID, seniors and military. Tickets are available at the box office, by calling 858-748-0505 or online at powaycenter.com.